Are the closures of hospital gowns important in patient care?

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

If you were to perform an opinion poll of your patients asking their least favorite feature of hospital gowns, the most common complaint is going to be the open back gowns. The material used in the gown, whether it is cloth, plastic, or paper, is less important than the concern that butt cheeks are going to sneak out of the gown. So, the answer to that question is most assuredly a yes. However, there are times when a side tie style patient gown simply isn’t going to do.

While it’s always important to be concerned about your patients’ comfort and convenience, explain your choice in gowns and be sure your client wears the best gown for the situation. Keeping a supply of back and side tying gowns is a good way to offer the best of both worlds.

What are isolation hospital gowns used for and how should they be cared for?

Isolation hospital gowns are used for cases in which it is likely that blood or another potentially harmful substance is likely to be present. For the most part, the isolation gowns are worn by the medical professionals, even though they are used for the protection of the patient and medical team. Common sense dictates that placing the patient in a gown with long sleeves is going to be counterproductive to actually treating the patient.

The type of isolation hospital gown is going to have a lot to do with how they are cared for. The disposable type of these gowns is simple to take care of. Just keep them in a clean, safe environment until its time to use them and then throw them away in a biohazard safe receptacle after use. With the cloth type of isolation gown, it is best to send the soiled gowns to a hospital laundry service where the proper chemicals and cleaning techniques are used to ensure the gowns return clean and contaminant free.

What choices can you expect to be given when ordering hospital gowns for your office, clinic, or hospital department?

Length is often a big decision involved in choosing your hospital gowns purchase. Shorter or cap length are great for examining the upper body, while longer gowns are ideal for just about everything else. You will also have to decide if you need gowns that allow for IV usage. Many medical settings, especially the hospital or long term care facilities, often find having a sufficient supply of both IV and regular hospital gowns to be beneficial.

The style of the hospital gowns is also pretty important. A selection of these is also useful. Sleep shirt gowns are perfect for those patients who no longer need a great deal of hands on care, while side or back tying hospital gowns allow for easily procedures and direct care. There are plenty of sizes available from kids’ sizes all the way up to bariatric sizing. With some careful planning, finding the correct assortment of hospital gowns for your office won’t be a problem.

How can bariatric equipment help your overweight patients feel more comfortable in the doctor’s office or medical clinic?

Monday, March 09, 2009

Having weight issues is a major physical risk as any medical professional knows. The part that is often overlooked is the psychological damage that goes along with this kind of health risk. Embarrassment is often a concern for the bariatric patient. By providing equipment, from scales to seating and exam tables that is suitable for these patients, you are allowing them to feel comfortable and literally and figuratively, supported. A patient is much more likely to engage in constructive conversation with their physician if they feel comfortable.

Even if the office sees patients of a normal weight and size, having bariatric equipment won’t make any difference. Most people appreciate having plenty of room in waiting room chairs and on exam tables. You can’t go wrong with adding these useful pieces of equipment to your office.

Where do you start making much needed changes with bariatric equipment?

The most logical place in your office to start making changes is either the waiting room or the exam room. In the waiting room, proper sized chairs can make huge difference in how patients of all sizes and needs feel. You may find that simply adding chairs without arms is sufficient for your office’s needs. However, specially made waiting room chairs are also incredibly useful as they are typically reinforced, with wider seats, and are ideal for patients of any size.

In the exam room, having the proper sized tables are crucial to the safety, not to mention comfort and confidence, of your bariatric patients. Scales designed for this demographic group are vitally important as well. If you are going to start with the exam room for your bariatric equipment makeover, it’s a good idea to include foot stools, with or without handles, to the room as well. Foot stools are great for relieving the pressure additional weight puts on the legs and feet even when in a sitting position.

What kinds of bariatric equipment are available for transporting patients inside the hospital or clinic or even in emergency vehicles?
Every patient has the right to be comfortable and safe while being cared for in a medical setting even if it is on the road. Fortunately, there are plenty of types of bariatric equipment available to make this goal obtainable. Inside the clinic or hospital, bariatric wheelchairs are commonly used for taking patients to test sites or to physical therapy. With their wider seats and wheel base, the patient is assured for a safe and comfortable ride. The addition of wheelchair cushions is another way to help patients feel comfortable. Also inside the medical setting, the use of bariatric stretchers and tables is very useful.

For emergency transportation, the stretchers are again an important part of proper patient care. While obesity may complicate some of your patients’ health, less than adequate medical equipment certainly shouldn’t add to the problem. Proper bariatric equipment can make all the difference in the world.

What characteristics do all medical training manikins have in common?

For many medical and training settings, in order to cover all of the necessary bases, more than one type of training manikin is needed. It only makes good sense to be sure the manikins you order are of the finest quality and are built to last. Any medical supply company you work with should be willing to go over any of the details you want to discuss, but it’s important to use your common sense during this process as well. For durability as well as ease of cleaning, look for medical manikins that are made from steel on the interior and heavy plastic on the exterior. Especially water rescue manikins should have rust resistant steel on the inside for a long life being used in the water.

When it comes to manikins like CPR or patient care manikins, many of them also come equipped with a supply of masks or safety covers for the mouth area of the manikin. It’s just a safety precaution to try to limit cross contamination among the staff or class members.
How can the different medical training manikin sizes be beneficial in a classroom setting?Accidents and tragic circumstances occur despite the best of intentions. The result can be child or young people being injured or in need of first aid. Giving medical field students and emergency personnel the opportunity to work with units that are infant and child sized helps ensure that if and when the need arises, they are ready for action and feel somewhat comfortable working on such a small patient. In service industries like day cares or schools, this type of training can be life saving. It’s crucial for success that the team be trained on these young people. The smaller sized training manikins are also important tools for those working in the geriatric fields. As people age, their size often diminishes as well as their bone density. Smaller medical training manikins are great for helping health care workers get a grasp in the difference in working on a younger adult and helping an elderly patient.

What are some methods for ensuring that you are ordering the right training manikins for your needs?

Few things are more frustrating than being in need of supplies, making your order, and finding out that it wasn’t quite what you had in mind. Then, you have to waste time sending the products back and wait for a refund before you can order the right thing. There are a couple of ways you can avoid this headache with your medical training manikin ordering. The old fashioned method of ordering from a catalog has its advantages. Just to ensure that you have all of the details correct, you might want to call the company and ask the pertinent questions.
For the fastest results and most convenient shopping experience, nothing can beat online websites for the most accurate product descriptions and easiest ordering. Most websites also offer other contact resources if you need them.

Do medical manikins have more than function?

Even those in the medical field have made the mistake of thinking that medical manikins mean CPR and CPR alone. After all, those are the most common types of manikins for first aid training. However, there are several other kinds, each and every one of them made for a different purpose. While on the subject of the CPR manikins though, it’s important to note that they also are made for multiple uses in some case. It’s not uncommon to find a CPR unit that also has water rescue capabilities or is designed to be used for choking techniques.
Some of the simplest designs for medical manikins include torso only manikins as well as patient care manikins. Both are supposed to be rather plain and are suitable for a wide range of training purposes. You should also keep in mind that those medical manikins are perfect for traveling.
On the other hand, some medical manikins are incredibly specialized. For example, some of the CPR manikins are equipped with lights and computer components to indicate that the user has his or her hands in the correct place, compression rate is correct, and that depression depth is correct for the simulated victim. You can also find medical manikins of every kind with memory chips and even printers to give students a detailed evaluation of their performance.
What sizes are medical manikins available in?
Being a part of the health care or emergency response field, you already know that people aren’t a one size fits all deal. The medical manikin manufacturers have done all they can to ensure that there is a diverse selection in terms of size. Pediatrics, emergency response teams, and day care employees especially have need of the infant and child sized medical manikins. Adolescent and adult sizes tend to be the most popular though, for everyday first aid training and display.
In order to decide on the correct sized medical manikin, take a look at the needs of your office or organization and plan accordingly. Many places make the sound decision to have at least one of each size manikin available.
What are some features all good medical manikins have in common, regardless of their specialized elements?
It doesn’t really matter if you need a CPR manikin or one that is designed to assist in arrhythmia simulation. If it isn’t made well, it really isn’t worth your time. When you are looking to purchase a new medical manikin for your organization, be sure to consider factors like construction materials. Heavy duty plastic is good because it is easily cleaned and lasts a long time. Especially in terms of the water rescue manikins, you want to be sure that it is made with rust resistant steel for the longest life. Choosing the right medical manikin in terms of materials is mostly common sense. Any good retailer or manufacturer should be more than willing to answer any questions you may have about the quality and construction of their medical manikins.

What kinds of professionals need water rescue manikins for job training?

Friday, March 06, 2009

While CPR manikins are used for training medical professionals, day care workers, and anyone who wants to have this valuable skill, water rescue manikins are more specialized. For the most part, they are used by organizations and people in the emergency response field. Naturally, lifeguards fall into this category, as well as water rescue workers. During and to keep rescue skills sharp, these manikins are designed to simulate an actual emergency.
What special features do water rescue manikins have to simulate the kinds of emergencies that come up in the water?
Anyone who has ever tried to move another person in the water knows that this feat can be almost impossible if the other person offers any kind of resistance. During a water rescue, unless the victim is unconscious, they tend to be incredibly frightened and resisting rescuers is a common occurrence. Water rescue manikins are designed to help personnel train for this possibility. They are equipped with special tanks that allow for the trainer to fill them with water and in some cases, a brick, to cause the manikin to sink further in the water and be more difficult to move.

Another important feature you will find in the best quality water rescue manikins are the articulated joints. A stiff lifeless body is the last thing you want to find in the water and it is also rather unlikely. To assist in the proper training of crucial water rescue teams, manufacturers have added moveable joints to their manikins. It’s just another way to ensure that training exercises are as close to real life as possible.

What are some other design benefits should you look for before you purchase the next CPR manikin for your office, clinic, or hospital department?

When you are spending money on any training device for your practice, you want to be sure it is going to be the most advantageous to your office and staff, as well as your wallet. For these reasons, there are a few things you want to look for in a well made CPR manikin. Among the top design benefits to consider, a CPR manikin with a fully functional head, neck, and jaw is crucial for ensuring that training and practice hours are as life like as possible. In a real life setting, the neck and jaw are going to move in a specific way. It helps if the CPR manikin is equipped to do that as well.

Another element you will want to look for in your CPR manikin are some anatomically correct landmarks on the body. Hand placement depends a great deal on where the victim’s belly button and chest bones are located. With the newer models of CPR manikins, the anatomical landmarks are in place to give the student a clear view of where their hands should be. As unimportant as this feature may sound, it makes a huge difference in how the overall training comes out. A good medical supply company will have no trouble helping you choose the correct model for your needs.

What are some of the advantages of the newer CPR manikins over those made in years past?

CPR manikins have long been an important tool used for training medical professionals, first aid officers in the work place, and all kinds of other people in this crucial and life saving technique. The manikins in the past were fairly basic representations of the human body and were limited in their functions. The more modern CPR manikins have been created with all kinds of special abilities and functions. They can indicate the proper placement of the hands on the chest, as well as provide feedback related to the correct depression depth. The manikin can also give an accurate report on the compression rate used by the practitioner as well as the ventilation volume. In short, the newer version of the CPR manikin is incredibly useful as a teaching tool and helps ensure correct learning and technique.

Is it always essential to purchase an adult as well as a child size CPR manikin for use in the office or teaching environment?
Naturally, a pediatric office or clinic would do well to have a specialized CPR manikin for educating about performing CPR on children. Just about everyone else would do just fine with a more basic unit that is designed to be modified to the correct children depression depth and compression rates. Many of the newer models of the CPR manikins are designed to be modified by simply changing the springs in the torso of the manikin. Any good CPR manikin will likely come equipped with the proper springs and instructions for this modification